Healing Hearts
by Metal Flowers
Summary: Edward and Alice have done the unforgivable, and their partners were witnesses to that fact. With Edward guilty, Alice not at all remorseful, and the two left seperated, how will they cope? How will they continue to live? Will they find romance? Set in early Eclipse, rated T because it's a good rating, and there will be Besper / BellaxJasper.
1. Chapter 1-Bella

Today was the day. Today, I'd accept Edward's offer. I'd accept his conditions. Anything to stay with him forever.

My truck having broken down, I had Charlie drop me off at the beginning to their driveway. I started to walk down the driveway, the gravel crunching under my feet, and I noticed something was wrong.

Edward had told me that he was hunting today, but his Volvo and Austin Martin were in the driveway. Did he take Emmett's car? I shrugged aside my constant worrying and walked up to the gigantic front porch. For once, I wanted a makeover. I hadn't asked Alice yet, but I'm sure that she'd agree. When didn't she want to make me perfect? I wanted to be pretty for Edward when he came home. I wanted this day to be perfect. I hesitantly knocked on the door (did I really want this makeover?) and Jasper opened it, his face solemn. What?

"You shouldn't be here if you don't want to get hurt," he whispered, his voice tight with remorse. I gave Jasper a warm smile as I stepped around him, "You won't hurt me, silly."

"No, I won't," he agreed, looking at me with light butterscotch eyes, "I came home early from hunting with Rosalie, Emmett, and my parents...and I came home...and...just go to Alice's room."

Vampires didn't hesitate. They didn't have problems with speech. Ever.

I hesitantly followed his instructions, and as I grew nearer to the room I'd never been in, strange, animal like noises greeted me. Grunts and screwms filled my head and I assumed the obvious. Someone was hurt. Could it be the Volturi? That was likely. Maybe they had come here to check if I was a vampire yet. Aro would've read Edward's mind and learned that he didn't plan to turn his singer- me.

I tripped as I started forward, throwing open the door. I didn't see them at first. I was too distracted by the room itself. The walls were painted a hot pink, the carpet was a charcoal like black, and everything was put in it's place. Girly posters of models and dresses hung on the wall. The room screamed Alice, and I could barely see traces of Jasper at all. There was a cowboy hat that bore the Confederate symbol on a table, an old, worn book about America's history on a nightstand, and a pair of boots by the door, but nothing else.

Then, my eyes were drawn to the two figures on the bed, clearly not being attacked in any way. They hadn't noticed me yet, too entangled in the bliss they must be sharing. Alice was on the bottom and her nails raked along the modern Adonis's back. Her back arched as Edward...entered her again... I stumbled back until my back pressed against the door frame. How...how could they do this? My...my best friend...and...my boyfriend.

The hole in my chest that had healed since Edward came back was now back in full force, tearing at the pieces of me. I was shattered, this time impossible to put together. Unfamiliar arms wrapped around me and dragged me away, back into the hallway. It was Jasper, of course. He knelt down beside me and wiped the flowing tears off my face. His sandy blonde hair hung around his face like a halo, and his eyes held deep depression, depression that I now knew the cause to.

"Don't cry," he whispered and gave me a reassuring smile, all faked and for my benefit, "They...don't deserve it." Suddenly, the two vampires were standing in front of us, each dressed in their own clothes. They looked so normal and their clothes were so crisp that my mind threatened to believe that the whole thing was just a dream, but I could see the guilt in their eyes.

"I came to say yes," the tortured words escaped my lips, "I wanted to marry you...how could you?"

Edward looked frozen to the spot, his lips trembling and his hand outstretched in my direction, "Bella...I'm sorry."

I shook my head. Nothing would help now. Not even Edward could put the pieces of my heart back together again. Bella Swan fell off the wall, and all the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Bella back together again.

"Goodbye, Alice," Jasper pushed past her and started to pack his bag without another word. Had he seen this coming? Was he hiding his feelings so that Alice couldn't see him break?

"You're leaving?" Alice asked, the venom in her eyes threatening to overflow.

"Don't you dare look for me," Jasper said quietly before coming back with a suitcase in one hand, "I'm taking Bella home."

"I'll do it," Edward volunteered, but Jasper growled protectively.

"Like hell you will," Jasper snapped before picking my limp body up, cradling me with one arm. He smelled like a late fall day, I realized. All vampires had their own signature sent, Esme smelling like sugar, Carlisle smelling like a fireplace...Jasper smelled the best, like a mixture of wood smoke and crushed leaves.

"You'll hurt her," Edward argued, tugging at his messy hair. Even I could see the irony in that question.

Jasper gave a short laugh as we went through the house at a human's pace, trying not to scare me with speed. How considerate, I thought in a daze. He left his suitcase at the door and Jasper hopped onto his motorcycle, a hand me down from Edward. I seated myself behind him and wrapped my arms around his thinly muscled chest. I closed my eyes and sniffled as he drove me home. After everything that happened, I just wanted to sleep and never, ever wake up. The only thing that kept me from falling asleep right at that moment was that I'd fall onto the street and die painfully.

Jasper parked in front of my house after what seemed like an eternity. He actually drove the speed limit, it seemed. Jasper picked me up again and carried me inside the house, where Charlie buzzed around me. His voice was loud and rough, so I turned my face away from him, burying my face in his buttom down shirt.

"She saw Edward and Alice...doing something unnacceptable," Jasper said to Charlie, that being the only explanation needed, "I'm going to take her to her room."

"Is there anything that I can do?" Charlie asked worriedly, probably predicting another zombie episode.

"Just don't let Edward or Alice anywhere near her," Jasper said with such authority that Charlie shut up. The next thing I knew, I was lying on my bed, with Jasper sitting in my rocking chair.

"I want to make sure that Edward leaves you alone tonight. I'll be gone before you wake."

Gone? I wanted to move my lips, but I was too far gone already. When will I see you again? Will I ever see you again? Will I be stuck seeing the lying, cheating faces of my ex-favorite people everyday?

"Shh," Jasper sighed, moving so that he was sitting next to me. He stroked my chocolate brown hair soothingly as a wave of calm washed over me, "You'll be fine."

I really doubted that.


	2. Chapter 2-Jasper

As I watched the frail human girl sleep on her bed, I sobbed. I brought my knees to my chest and hugged myself tightly, trying to keep the pieces together.

Alice had cheated on me before, it was true. There'd been that time with Alec, Demitri, Felix, Benjamin, and then that _terrible_ time when she'd gotten too adventurous and spent a night out with that _mutt_ Seth. A mutt!

This…this was different. Alice had broken my trust one too many times, mainly because of the who. My brother, Edward.

Edward was a fuckup –I should really stop the nasty habit of cursing- in every sense of the word. He could never appease his girlfriend. She was always either upset, angry, scared, frustrated, irritated, or confused. Happiness or bliss only occurred when he used his vampire beauty to his benefit. He never treated her right. The human was more of a prize to him, a woman to hang on his arm. He loved her for her mind, he'd claimed. I knew how he really felt. He loved her for her mind's _silence._

"Edward," the girl mumbled in her sleep, gripping the blankets around her in fear with an underlying tone of accusation of the betrayal, "Alice."

"Shh," I whispered again as I gave her the smallest bit of hope. I normally held back on altering the emotions of those close to me (does that mean that I regarded this human as a 'close friend' or something of the like?) but the girl needed it now.

Humans were so fragile. They mourned for so long, they break so easily, and their emotions are unbalanced. This human's emotions were steadier than others, but nowhere near a vampire's.

At the slightest hint of sound outside Bella's window, I straightened up and slammed on my poker face. As the window slid open, silent to a human's senses but loud for mine, my mind block went up. They were weak and wouldn't stand a chance among Edward's probing intentions, but at least it was something.

Edward launched himself through the now open window and stood before me, soaked from the rain that had recently started to pour. His chest heaved with unnecessary breaths, and I sent him a tidal force of regret. He was no longer 'close'.

"Get away from her," he commanded me, searching my every thought. I could feel him inside my head, gently tugging and pulling at the thoughts he wanted. Edward's power disgusted me.

I stood up slowly, trying not to disturb the human, "I'm not thirsty. I didn't skip out on hunting today, unlike two pieces of scum that I know."

"Jasper, Alice wants you to forgive her," Edward tried a different approach, picking out the large half of my brain that was obsessing about my wife.

"I'll have Jenks file up some divorce papers," I growled as I stood right in front of him, towering over him, "I suggest that you leave _right now,_ you bastard."

"What?" Edward stumbled back so that he was backed up against the wall. Coward, I spat in my mind. He visibly flinched and I barked out a short, deranged laugh.

"This isn't about the human," I said through my teeth, yet a nervous tug in my long dead heart proved that wrong, "It about me, and Alice, and you. What I _wouldn't give_ to tear apart the man my wife cheated on me with."

"Fine," Edward held up his hands loftily, "I'll just talk to her hands later."

I hadn't planned this, but I immediately came up with a solution. He never had an issue for using his ability, so I wouldn't have any issues with using mine. I've been holding back this whole time, thinking my ability would unsettle the others. I was always the gentleman, so until now I'd only performed parlor tricks.

"No," I whispered as I stared deep into Edward's guilt ridden eyes. I snared him and tipped my head slightly. Edward copied my movements. Now was the time. I shifted around his emotions, erased every shred of guilt and filled him with cold happiness. I snipped away any emotion tying him to the human in this room, "You will never beg Isabella Marie Swan for forgiveness. You will never seduce her. You will never feel any attraction for her."

Edward's eyes were dazed as his emotions radiated agreement.

Why had I done that? Why had I saved the feelings for a mere human instead of ripping this man's head off? I would've won, that I know. I had no time for deliberating.

"Go back to Alice," I waved my hand, my throat swelling at the name. Edward nodded and left without another word. I sighed as I sat back down next to the human, Bella.

Why was I doing this, really? I could leave right now and no one would think bad of me. I, for some reason, just want to leave this human with the impression that life gets better. I wanted to be the hero, something that no one had let me be before.

"Jasper," she sighed again and smiled. Maybe my work was already done.

I laid my fingers lightly on her forehead as I sifted through her emotions. I didn't want to change anything major, since her feelings should be her own, but I felt the urge to make life a little easier for her. I strengthened her senses of hope and self confidence before separating myself from her.

"Goodbye," I said, probably to the human, before leaping out the window. The rushing air enveloped me as I fell through the air, and I met the earth with only a whisper of sound. I brought out my phone and dialed Carlisle's number. It went straight to voicemail and I guessed that Carlisle was still out on the hunt.

"I have to leave for awhile. Alice cheated on me…again…with Edward. I think that I'll travel with Peter and Charlotte. Bye, Dad," I cursed myself for the lame message, but dialed Peter immediately after. He picked up.

"Hey, Jasper," Peter greeted me, upbeat, "I just finished with a hunt. I can't believe that you gave up this lifestyle for _animals_."

"It happened again," I exhaled loudly and leaned against the side of Bella's house. The rain had already soaked me. It was annoying, but I couldn't feel the cold that it must've entailed.

"Oh man," Peter groaned, "Come meet up with us. Where are you now, your house in Alaska?"

"Forks, outside a human girl's house," I rolled my shoulders, "I actually feel kind of exhilarated. It's the first time I've used my real power in years."

While most of my mind was agonizing over this betrayal that my wife had done, my body seemed pumped and electrically charged from allowing my ability to flow freely. I wasn't meant to reject my ability.

"You actually did more than your little mood changes? Finally!" Peter laughed as static threatened to break the connection, "We're in Portland. What's the girl's address?"

I gave him the address and directions before hanging up. I heard Bella stir in her room, but she didn't wake up. I was strangely glad and disappointed that she didn't.

Humans were fragile. She couldn't possibly go through this situation alone.

I sent Emmett a short text that explained nothing, and then double checked that it went through. This message was important, for both the human and me. I wanted to be the hero, after all. It was only the question of whose.

Be there for Isabella. She needs a big brother.

-J.


	3. Chapter 3-Bella

**_Hey, I posted a story on my fictionpress acount called Dragon Days, and I was wondering if a few of you could check it out. It's only one chapter, and I just wanted to know if I suck at writing my own fiction._**

**_Without Further Adieu,_**

"_You're not good enough for me," Edward breathed, his eyes cold with indifference on what happened to me. He stepped away and linked his arm through Alice's, and they both walked away. Alice never even so much as looked back._

_I gasped as the cold arms around me tightened. _

"_Pain," Jane whispered. That's ridiculous, I thought hysterically, we both know that her power won't work on me. Why would she even-_

_In an instant, Jane snapped my arm. I screamed at the sudden, intense pain. No, no, no! Edward! Alice! Please, come back. Please. You can't just leave me like this. You can't. It's not possible for someone to be so cold._

"_Get away from her!" a familiar voice roared and Jane's thin, willowy arms dropped me. I fell to the ground as the sound of a murderous fight burst out. I gripped my arm, gasping in pain. It hurt so much. It hurt it hurt it hurt. Make the pain stop. I was bleeding all over the place. The blood was making me dizzy. The salt/rust smell was attacking me._

_There was a high pitched screech (the sound of a vampire's head being torn off) and cold arms wrapped around me once more. These arms weren't angry. These were protecting and warm._

"_Jasper," I cried into his chest. I cried about everything. My fear, Edward, Alice, my arm…everything hurt._

"_It'll be okay, darlin'," he whispered, and I believed him. It wasn't okay now, but maybe it'll be okay…someday._

I woke, clutching the blankets around me. Where was Jasper? I could smell him. If I could smell him, then he must be here. I couldn't be alone. I wasn't ready to be by myself yet. I needed Jasper right now, like a druggie needed a hit.

Why did I need Jasper? I couldn't answer that question. It must be for his power. That would make sense. He could sweep away my anxiety.

"Bella?" someone said my name gently. It wasn't Edward or Alice, for which I was glad. It wasn't Jasper, for which I was sad. It wasn't Charlie, which confused me. Who else would be in my house?

I searched for the cause of the noise and saw Emmett, standing in the corner of my room. He was looking at me with such concern that I wished to comfort _him_. How stupid is that?

"Emmett?" I asked, my voice thick with tears and sleep. What was he doing here?

"Aw, Bells. Are you okay?" the teddy bear like man came up to me, "I swear, I am going to kill those two…they've broken up our family."

"Does Charlie know you're here?" I asked, avoiding that topic. If I answered truthfully, Emmett really would kill them. If I lied, Emmett would be able to tell.

"Yes, actually," Emmett said, "Rose is talking to him right now."

"About what?" I was too tired to be suspicious.

"She's taking you on a trip for a few days. If you want to go, that is. It was my idea," Emmett pouted, "Please go?"

"She's going," Rosalie said, without room to argue, as she opened the door and started to throw some of my clothes into a bag, "Bella, it's going to be just you and me for a week. I'm going to get your mind off of that priss if it's the death of me. You're _not_ going emo on everyone again if I have anything to do with it."

"Wait, I'm not going?" Emmett pouted, surprised. I just tried to close my eyes again. Maybe if I went back to sleep, all of this craziness would stop.

"Don't you dare go to sleep yet, Bella Swan, or I'll burn your book collection," Rosalie warned me as she threw the covers off the bed. I heard a stack of papers drop on my desk, "I've already done your makeup work that I picked up from the school. It's in your handwriting, don't worry."

"Rose gets things done," Emmett whispered to me as he pulled me off the bed. I stood there, still in my jeans and wrinkled shirt from yesterday, as Rosalie inspected me.

Somehow, I didn't doubt Emmett's words. Rosalie really was…focused.

"You look like crap, but it'll have to do," Rosalie sighed. She tossed me a set of clothes –they weren't mine- and motioned for me to go to the bathroom and change.

Really, what else was I supposed to do? I was just glad that they hadn't left…

_I'll be gone before you wake_.

Okay, _one_ of them had left. One I could bear.

"Okay, Rosalie."


	4. Chapter 4-Jasper

I sat on the roof of Bella's house all night, waiting for something to happen. I wasn't sure what I was waiting for, though maybe it was just the chance to be alone with my thoughts. If that was the case, then I was a lucky, lucky man because I was oh-so alone.

Alice.

I love her. I love her delicate face. I love the way her eyes would light up with delight whenever she had the chance to give something to someone else. Alice was compassionate in that area. She'll spoil everyone that she loves, under the guise of it being for her benefit. She rescued me when I was at my lowest, drinking the blood of every human in sight. My guilt just heightened and heightened with each body I drained, the sweet, tangy blood tainted with the remorse.

My throat burned slightly with the memory, but it wasn't too unbearable. The physical pain was actually a nice distraction from my wife's betrayal. I really did mean it when I said I was done with Alice. Even though I wasn't the psychic one, I knew that I'd never be able to get over this, even with all of eternity to try and forgive her.

"Jasper," a hand clapped me on the back and I snarled, pinning my assailant to the ground. Without another thought, I dove for the throat with every intention of tearing the man to shreds. No one sneaks up on me.

A second person (this one much smaller than the first) flipped me over and threw me off the side of the house, tossing me hard enough that I landed in one of the trees that surrounded the Swan residence. They must be vampires to be able to throw me that far.

"As much as I'd love to see my two guy friends wrestle," the smaller of the two chuckled, "I'd prefer it if you didn't kill my husband, Jaz."

I blinked and, for the first time, looked at the two vampires clearly. One was a male, a brute ginger that was only slightly slimmer than Emmett. The other reminded me strongly of Alice, but the one that stood in front of me was much taller. Their eyes were both blood red.

"Peter. Charlotte," I greeted them, loosening out of my battle stance. I jumped and felt the wind rush through my hair for only a second before I was back on the roof, embracing my old war comrade. It had been awhile since I'd last seen them, almost a year now. Time to a vampire went by both quickly and slowly, my perfect memory making it so that I never missed them, but time dragging on just the same.

"I heard that little pixie did it again," Charlotte sighed, her jaw tight with irritation. She'd always said that Alice wasn't good enough for me, but Charlotte was never happy to be proved right on it, "With Mr. Antisocial, no less."

"He's been plenty social after meeting his human," I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets, being careful not to tear it. Or maybe I should ruin it, since Alice had gotten it for me for this past Christmas. Her eyes had shined like diamonds when I unwrapped the jacket, sliding it on with a smile. She'd been so happy to make me smile…no, the jacket's getting torched.

"Yeah. Isabella, was it?" Peter licked his lips as his eyes grew darker, "This is her house, right? I'm thirsty and it would make Eddie boy upset if his human died. Why don't we kill two birds with-"

Peter didn't get to finish his sentence. I'd already grabbed him by the next and lifted him a foot above the ground. He actually forgot that he didn't need to breathe, and he floundered around for a few seconds, a panicked look on his face.

"Again, put my husband down, Jasper," Charlotte blew a lock of hair out of her face. She'd let it grow out from her normal short haircut, which suited her. She seemed annoyed.

"Bella is not to be touched," I pronounced each syllable sharply, digging my message in. Peter had realized that he wasn't in any danger at the moment, so he took his time in replying. Impatient, I tightened my grip on his neck until hairline cracks started to appear.

I expected Charlotte to stop me, but she held back. Good girl. She'd learned from the long years in Maria's army that she'd never be able to best me in a fair fight.

"Fine," Peter gasped, fumbling along my hands as he tried to make me release my grip. I complied, letting go, and he dropped to the ground, "Wow, Jaz. Touchy, much?"

"Divorce does that," I snapped, crossing my arms, "Why are you here?"

Charlotte place a hand on my shoulder, barely reacting when I flinched away, "Jasper, you're hurting. We're here for you."

That was a lie. Charlotte might be driven by loyalty between friends, but Peter was too much of an idiot for that. I'd destroyed any trust he had in me when I ripped off his arm in the last battle we fought together. Peter would have some other motive for coming to see me, and it wouldn't be anything touchy feely.

I blasted him with the urge to be honest. Peter didn't fight the emotion at all. He just grinned and told me his plan anyway, as if he had planned to do so in the beginning.

"I've come along to stop this pansy animal drinking nonsense," he confessed sheepishly, "The Major is supposed to be a badass fighter, not some wimp that only drinks squirrel."

"Good luck with that," I laughed in his face. I was his superior in every way, from fighting skills to maturity to power. There's no way he'd be able to get me to break my vegetarian diet.

"I don't need luck," Peter scoffed, "I know you, Jaz. That'll be enough."

He was radiating confidence and determination, but he was Peter, so I didn't pass him off as a threat.

I rolled my eyes, "Let's just get out of this godforsaken town."


	5. Chapter 5-Bella

**This update is thanks to AbbeNormal. If it hadn't been for your inspiring review, I wouldn't have gotten off my *ahem please excuse my language* ass, and everyone would have had to wait another month or two for an update. Thank you Abbe! I'll do my very best to write pure awesomeness from now on.**

**Without further adieu,**

"I don't want to," I tried to tell Rosalie as I sat in her car. The knapsack of clothes was tossed in the trunk, but I had no idea what was in there. It looked like Rosalie had just packed random clothes, but with a vampire, you never know, "I just want to watch some TV or read a book. I'm just not in the mood to-"

"When do you ever watch TV, Bella?" Rosalie asked, her tone neither condescending or annoyed, like it usually is. She was still focused, "We both know that you just want time to sit around and mope."

"I don't mope," I muttered, aware that I'd had nearly the exact same conversation with my father two years ago. I. Don't. Mope. Why does everyone say that I do?

Well, maybe I did, but that was two years ago. Two freaking years. One ninth of my life. I developed better coping skills.

"Either way, you're coming with me," Rosalie sniffed, speeding along the road. She turned into the exit that would take us to the airport, but that didn't surprise me. Rosalie was a Cullen. I would have been surprised if we actually had stayed in state.

"Where are we going, Rosalie?" I asked, giving up my argument. I had never won a fight with a Cullen, and I couldn't expect to. Vampires are smarter. They would just pick apart my reasoning.

"How many times have I told you to just call me Rose?" she countered, deliberately ignoring my question. I bit my lip. "Rose" was just so…informal.

"Okay," I said slowly, nodding, "Where are we going, _Rose_?"

"A city with lots of light. A city that won't let you mope. A city where the two cheaters will never, _ever_ be able to find us," she answered in hints. Where was she talking about?

"Los Angeles?" I guessed. Rosalie's –erm, Rose's- mouth curved into a smile, but she shook her head.

"No."

"Vegas?" I guessed again, hoping that I wasn't right. When I thought of Vegas, I thought of casinos. Card games weren't the best idea for me, since everyone knows I have the worse luck.

No one had as bad of luck as me. I mean, well, most people don't. Most people don't find their soon-to-be-fiancé in bed with their best friend. Ex-best friend, I reminded myself, and ex-whatever Edward was. Ex-first love. Ex-boyfriend. Ex-lover. Ex…too many ex's to count.

Really, I just wanted to X out all the time I spent with him, or at least erase it. I don't want there to be any remnants, any hints that he existed. If there was, then I think I'd hurt too much.

"I like your thinking, but no. That's the first place Edward will think to look, since that's where Emmett thinks we're going," Rose explained. That didn't make sense. Why would he want to look for me? Seeing my doubt, Rose continued, "Edward might have his head up his ass, but Alice isn't that…well, she is that stupid and bitchy, but that's not the point. She's psychotic and a-"

"Stop cursing, please," I asked in a quiet voice, sorry to have interrupted her, but I didn't like it when Rose cursed.

"Sorry. Well, Alice will want to find you, and Edward would probably help her with that," Rose told me, looking away from the road to give me a sympathetic smile, "I'm sorry for that, too. You probably don't want to hear their names, right?"

I remember that I told Rose about my psychotic break two years ago, where I couldn't stand to hear anything Cullen related. Did she think the same thing would happen now?

"It's okay," I said, which was the truth (as far as I knew). Then, I continued into what I was sure what was the truth, "I still have my family this time, so…"

"You always had us, even when you didn't know it," Rose said solemnly, "You've always had us. We were in here."

She pointed at the place where her heart used to beat, and looked at me with a straight face. I nodded and patted my own beating heart.

Neither of us could take it any longer, so we started laughing. Rose burst out in loud cackles, and mine was more of a breathless chuckle, but they were laughs nonetheless.

Rose turned back to the road, where the airport loomed in our sights.

"New York, Bells," she said at last, her grin showing her perfect teeth, "We're going to the city that never sleeps."


	6. Chapter 6-Jasper

Peter drove a truck—a 2013 F150. It was a downgrade from the last car I'd seen him in. Charlotte fancied thin, sleek cars, and Peter usually indulged her. Not this time, apparently. The car was a god awful shade of orange, and I had to sit in the back.

Peter had told me that we were going to Wyoming, which meant we'd have to cross over Idaho. That was a whopping 19 hour trip.

Time moves so differently to a vampire. After living through so many decades, a day seemed to be so short. Even so, my mind moved at the speed of light (or maybe even a little bit faster), so there was no time wasted in wallowing.

Alice would probably try to find me. She'd use her visions and try to find me. At least we had an ace up our sleeve. We had a way to escape her visions. Alice had never been able to find out why she could never immediately find me.

I'd guess that I had about two weeks before I ran into a Cullen. If I was lucky, I might have a month or two. Wyoming wasn't that far away, so they'd search other places first. When Alice couldn't find me with her ability, they'd start at the ends of the country and try to close in.

What would I do then? Depending on who found me, I might be forced to go back to Forks (or wherever they were all living at the moment). Peter would try to put up a fight, but Charlotte wouldn't be able to do anything, really. Once she had escaped Maria's watch, Charlotte had stopped fighting. She only defended, and I doubted that any of the Cullens would bother attacking her.

So, I would have only one other vampire to help me stay free of the Cullens. Two trained, battle hungry vamps against a coven. That wouldn't end well for anyone.

I didn't want Esme or Carlisle to get their heads ripped off. They weren't the best fighters, and Peter would easily rip off a limb or two of theirs.

I guess my plan of attack (or if I attacked at all) would depend on who found me first.

What if it was Alice? Would I go back? I didn't think that I was strong enough to continually ward off her apologies. Like all the times before, I might crack. I would find no reason to stay away. I'd fall into her arms.

Probably. But then again, maybe not. Maybe this would be the time I'd make my stand. She might have a pretty face, but I was The Major. I used to be strong. Hell, I used to be under Maria's command.

When did I get to be so weak that a small, childish woman could control me?

I didn't want to think of that. The great Jasper Whitlock, always under the control of a woman. Women were great. I loved independent ones.

I didn't love being controlled by one, though. Not at all.

That's when I realized it, or at least, when I _fully_ realized it. Alice was exactly like Maria. The jealousy, cheating, controlling…they were two peas on a pod. Alice was just sneakier about it, more manipulative. At least Maria had been up front about it.

Never again. I vowed when I left the South that I'd never fall into the clutches of Maria again, and here I was, in the exact same situation.

Today, I made a new vow. I'll never let anyone control me again. I'm not going to let anyone make me into something I'm not.

In my mind, I made a list of everything Alice had changed about me. She changed me into an animal blood drinker. She made me go to high school. She threw away all of my "cowboy clothes", as she called them, claiming that they would make me stand out. She made me stop talking to Peter and Charlotte.

She'd changed almost all of me. The only thing she'd never managed to completely eradicate was my accent, which stuck with me ever since my transformation from a human to a vamp.

"You doing okay back there?" Peter called through the open window. Of course I was, and he knew it. He continued, "I called your secret weapon. She'll meet us in Wyoming."

"How is she going to get there?" I asked. We had a couple hours head start, and I couldn't expect her to get a plane ticket. She didn't have enough money to be doing that on a whim.

"She's running," Peter said in a tone that voiced his thoughts—_what did you expect?_ "She'll get there before us."

Well, that was reasonable. For her, running would get her there before us. We would already be under her protection by the time Alice would think to search for me.

Alice wouldn't be able to find us. That was one person I didn't have to worry about running into. If Edward came…well, there'd be one less vampire on the _planet_ that I didn't have to worry about.

There wasn't anyone else that would be able to bring me back, if they were alone. Without an ability, no one stood a chance one-on-one.

That actually made me hope that the sonofabitch would show up. I wouldn't mind tearing his mind reading head off his body.

I wouldn't mind at all.


	7. Chapter 7-Bella

"This is a bad idea," I said as I stepped off the plane. I didn't remember being on the plane at all, and I wondered if I'd fallen asleep. I had eaten a donut in the terminal –while Rose stared at the pastry in disgust- and we'd stepped onto the plane right before it took off. I sat down in the seat (I didn't remember buckling up) and then, nothing.

I didn't even dream, which was probably for the best. If it was a nightmare, I was better off without it. If I had dreamed, my sleep talking probably would have been embarrassing.

I wondered who I would dream about now. I'd only ever dreamt of Edward since I came to Forks, but that obviously wasn't going to happen now. I wasn't going to dream of that cheating bastard.

I blinked. Did I just curse? I never cursed. Edward had said it was unladylike, so I squashed that bad habit.

"It's a great idea," Rose flipped her hair back, causing a few teenage guys to stare in our direction. I blushed and looked down, knowing that they'd never look at me. They were attractive, with moppy blond haircuts that seemed familiar, somehow.

I'm pathetic. It's barely been a day since I caught Edward in bed with Alice, and I was already scoping out guys. I had never scoped before I met Edward. Why was I doing it now?

"We're going shopping," Rose said. I looked at her warily, wondering if she was going to be like Alice. Alice always shoved me into girly dresses and caked on my makeup. If Rose tried to make me into a girly girl, I'd be liable to go crazy.

"No dresses," I crossed my arms and looked at Rose, trying to make my eyes as icy as hers could be, "I'm not walking around looking like I'm going to a cocktail party every day."

"Not everyday," Rose agreed, but cocked her head at me, "Let's compromise. I'll find you a dress you like, and you'll wear it someday."

"Do I get to choose the day?" I asked. Dress shopping wasn't my thing, but if Rose was willing to compromise, I'd do it. Maybe, just maybe, we'd actually find a dress I didn't hate.

"Of course," Rose said, then whirled around and began to quickly walk in the same direction that the majority of the crowd was going. I hurried after her, unaccustomed to her speed. She didn't take my hand and lead me around, like Alice would have done. I was glad for that. I wasn't a child, and I didn't need to be led around, "I already booked a hotel room for us, so we'll go shopping right away, unless you're hungry. Are you hungry?"

"Starving," I responded, my attention drawn to a smell in the air. Mm, I smelled something awesome, "Do you smell that?"

She stopped and sniffed the air, "I smell people, gas fumes, and…yeah, I smell something. Sushi. Do you like sushi?"

"I like sushi," I nodded and Rose took off again, following the scent like a bloodhound. I doubted any bloodhound would be wearing designer clothes, though.

"I'm not used to catering to a human's needs, so I might be a bit overattentive, or maybe not enough," Rose said as we walked, "Just bear with me, okay?"

"Okay," I smiled, looking down at the ground. It's not like it would be the _worst_ thing in the world to have a friend who worried about me, instead of one who dragged me everywhere regardless of what I wanted.

With that, we fell into silence, and I took this opportunity to look around. People filled the streets. Some were families, pushing around strollers laden with child caretaking supplies and the occasional shopping bag. Groups of teenagers were huddled everywhere, smiling and laughing like there was no tomorrow.

And the buildings were so _big_. I looked up and could barely see the tops of the skyscrapers around me. Nothing in Forks was this tall. Even when Renee had taken me on those roadtrips, we'd never stopped by New York. It's too busy, Renee had said.

I was jostled to the ground, after running into someone. I looked up to see two teenagers, a girl and a boy who looked related.

"Watch it," Rose hissed, standing behind me. I had no doubt that she was giving them the death glare, but these teenagers took it well. The girl didn't seem to even notice the glare, but the boy gave us a sheepish smile.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry," the girl said, helping me up, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I smiled at her as I stood up, "It's my fault, anyway."

"Wait," the girl stopped and gave me a strange look, "Bella? I almost didn't recognize you."

"I'm sorry. Do we know each other?" I asked. The girl had tan skin and thick, short black hair. She was a bit shorter than me. She was faintly familiar, I guess. The boy had black hair, but that was the only thing about him that stood out.

"Bella, it's me. Angela," she laughed, but didn't seem too surprised that I didn't recognize her, "I know it's been a few months since I moved away, but I can't look that different. Hey, this is my cousin Brice. I'm living with my aunt now."

Angela had to move five months ago because of some "bad living situation". Ben had been heartbroken. Maybe I would've recognized Angela right away, even now that her hair was different and she was wearing contacts, but I hadn't ever counted on seeing her again. It wasn't like she'd been my best friend. I regretted that.

"That's cool," I said, noticing that Rose wasn't looking very comfortable with this situation. I could understand. I mean, she and Angela hadn't been necessarily close, "It was nice to see you again."

"It was nice to meet you, too, Isabella," Brice said politely, using my full name. Maybe Angela had referred to me once or twice as that.

Angela looked at Brice, looking partially surprised. She gave me an apologetic glance, "I don't think Brice is feeling that great. Maybe we'll see each other later, Bella."

"Something tells me that we will," Rose replied coolly, before dragging me away. I looked back in my friend's direction, but they had disappeared into the crowd.

I snapped, "What the hell was that? Ange is my friend."

Rose sighed and ran a hand through her still perfect hair, losing the cynical act, "Angela might be your friend, but something's off with the boy. He didn't react like other boys. His heartbeat stayed the same. He barely looked at me."

I raised an eyebrow at her. She was freaked because he wasn't checking her out? That was so…like her, to do that.

"Fine, don't take me seriously," Rose said, her eyes lighting up as she saw a store sign, "This store. This one. I have a good feeling about this store."

The store, it turns out, was huge, but since the ceiling was so high, it felt even bigger. There were racks everywhere, displaying everything I could ever have imagined. I honestly felt a little intimidated by the store, but Rose held no such trepidation.

"We'll just pick out normal clothes for now," she informed me, "You're going to have a new wardrobe, one that you'll actually like."

"Fine," I crossed my arms and sucked in a breath, like I was preparing for some torturous event—which, for all I knew, it might be. She led the way to the far right side of the building, still not grabbing my hand like she was leading a child. I kept waiting for it to happen, waiting for Rose to prove similar to Alice.

They had seemed so alike yesterday. Had it only been yesterday since my life was sent into chaos? Well, my life had already been in chaos, but this was…a slightly worse chaos.

"This'll look good on you," Rose held up a button down plaid shirt after looking at it for only a few seconds, "It'll accent your boobs."

In automatic response to that statement, I crossed my arms—effectively covering that area, "Don't say that word."

"What word?"

"Rose…"

"Boobs are a fact of life."

"Rose!"

"You'll have to deal with it," Rose shrugged, and folded the shirt neatly over her arm. The shirt were varying degrees of blue.

"No more blue things," I said, and Rose instantly put the shirt back and grabbed another one, this one in shades of purple. It had a few pink tones, but that was fine.

"I thought you liked blue," she said in surprise. I couldn't blame her. My outfit used to be dominated by blue. If I didn't have on a blue shirt, I'd have on a blue necklace. Something always had to be blue.

When did it start? I've never really liked the color blue. It was always too bland. The color wasn't passionate.

Ah, I remember now. This trend had started when Edward told me how _lovely_ and _beautiful_ I looked in blue.

"It's not the best color in the world," I shrugged. It wasn't like I was committing a huge crime against fashion by not wanting any more blue things. It wasn't the color I looked best in, "My favorite color is green."

"Green would look good on you," Rose said, and threw the clothes into the shopping bag that I just realized she had, "So, you don't like blue. Is blue denim still okay? Or do you want to be a bit more trendy and go for bold colors, like pink or purple?"

"Blue jeans are fine," I said immediately, as if there had ever been a question about that. Jeans are a classic part of any of my outfits. They're comfortable, they go with anything, and they make my legs look nice. My legs were the things I liked most about my body. Edward had liked them, too, if his lingering glances were any evidence to that.

Isabella Swan, _stop._ _Stop thinking about him._

"Good," Rose said, snatching a few pairs of navy blue jeans. From the looks of it, they were exactly like the pair I had on, but I doubted it. Rose wouldn't pick out something I could get in Forks. These were probably special rich people, designer jeans that were etched in diamond or gold or something—or maybe diamonds and gold. You never know.

That was probably an exaggeration, but still.

"We have a decent amount of everyday clothes for you now. You liked them all, right?" she flipped her hair out of her face and gave me a smile, knowing that she hadn't picked a thing I wasn't uncomfortable with. I had to admit, she was good at this. Shopping with her wasn't that bad.

"Yeah, they were all great. I really liked them," I couldn't keep myself from returning the smile, betraying my excitement. I didn't usually get excited over girly things, but…I wanted to try on dresses.

"You like green, right?" Rose clapped her hands together, her movements unhampered by the bulky bag on her arm. She bit her perfectly lip glossed lip in suppressed giddiness.

"Yeah," I nodded, suddenly wary. What had gotten her so happy? "Why?"

Rose spun on her heel and marched her way through the racks of clothing, and I hurried to keep up with her. While we walked, she said, "While I was browsing, I saw this super cute dress, but it's not right for my body shape, and I thought that you liked blue, so I was just going to pick out blue dresses for you, but the dress I saw…oh Bells, it's freaking gorgeous."

I'd never seen Rose this excited about girly things before. Sure, she was hot and pretty, and looked like she just stepped out of a Vogue magazine, but she was normally low key about this stuff. Whenever she'd done my hair or makeup, she'd been cool about it.

It was the dresses. That was her weakness. She couldn't keep calm around dresses. Knowing this, she seemed so much more _human_.

She suddenly stopped and I slammed into her, not paying attention to my surroundings. She held up a dress to my body and eyed it, then me.

"I usually hate shopping at stores. I like to get things custom made, but this story held promise. This dress'll fit you like a glove," she smiled, "Do you want to try it on?"

I shrugged. Why not? I'd play it off on wanting to make Rose happy, but her eagerness was infectious. I wanted to see how it looked on me.

Rose nearly pushed me into the fitting room, and I proceeded to change into the dress. The zipper came up smoothly, which was a surprise. Whenever I'd tried on other dresses, the zipper had always caught on fabric, or had been broken from previous use.

I was glad that I had on my strapless bra today. My normal ones would have ruined the effect. When I saw myself in the mirror, I realized something.

This dress made me look hot.

I mean, vampire hot.

The shade of green was just right. It was light enough so that it complimented my dark hair, but dark enough that it stood out against my skin color. That was another thing; the dress color didn't make me look deathly pale. It made me look creamy.

Whether I had just changed my state of mind and grew some confidence, or it was due to the dress's amazing form, I looked hot.

I stepped outside the dressing room, but Rose wasn't there. That was strange, since I thought she'd want to see how the dress looked, but I wasn't too concerned about it. She probably just went to look for clothes for herself.

I went back into the dressing room and slipped out of the dress, making sure to hang it properly on its hanger, before I shoved my legs back into my worn jeans. I liked these jeans. I'm glad Rose wouldn't throw them out, like Alice would after a shopping trip. Rose really wasn't anything like her sister.

I sighed as I slid my shirt back on. Alice was Rose's sister, and that was never going to change. I wasn't sure I wanted it to. Alice was a permanent part in the Cullen family, kind of like Esme or Emmett. She was the annoying little sister that always tripped up, but overtime, everyone forgave. Me and her, we'd never be close again, at least, I didn't think we'd be. I was still really pissed and disappointed with her. Even so, I could never ask the Cullens to disown her.

Edward, on the other hand…

I thought I heard someone on the other side of the door, and my stomach was thrown into utter chaos. Covering my mouth and hoping I wouldn't ruin any clothes, I ran out fo the dressing rooms, past the clothing racks, and out the exit in record time. I faced the brick wall and leaned my head against it, praying to god that this would past.

"Isabella, I told you we'd meet again," Angela's cousin, Brice, said from behind me, sounding utterly amused. I turned around, and a shiver went up my spine.

He was still dressed as he was this morning, in a windbreaker and jeans, but there was something different about him. It was his eyes. The warmth had been driven right out of them, leaving them as cold as ice.

"Bella, run!" I heard Angela scream, but my feet were rooted to the ground. I was paralyzed from Brice's gaze. Somewhere in the corner of my mind, I knew that everything was fully functional. It was possible for me to run.

Yet, it wasn't. There was no possibility that I could run away, because in that moment, Brice reached inside his jacket and brought out a shiny, black object.

"It was a pleasure meeting you," Brice told me calmly, raising the weapon and aiming it at me, "You seemed like a nice girl. If you weren't vampire scum, I might have even fancied you."

I heard a click, a whoosh, and suddenly, my insides felt like they were being torn apart.


	8. Chapter 8- Jasper

We had barely been parked at Peter's house for a minute before our secret weapon came at the car in a sprint, looking the same as ever. Well, not exactly the same. She didn't age like humans did, but she had let her hair grow out, and her smile seemed to be more heartfelt than it was the last time I had seen her. I didn't think she had grown, so she was still the smallest werewolf I'd ever seen.

"Whitlock," she crossed her arms as she came to a stop beside the car, "I see you were stuck in the trunk."

"Well I didn't want to take poor Charlotte's place. I'd have to listen to Peter talk," I raised an eyebrow at her, and we both chuckled at his expense. Leah didn't care for Peter too deeply, but she had become fast friends with Charlotte, so she put up with him. Most of the time, "How are you?"

"I've been…good," she said, only the slightest cringe giving her away. She was still hurting, though I didn't need to pay attention to her body language to figure that out.

When Alice cheated on me with Seth, I'd stormed onto the reservation without any of the Cullens knowing, and I had broken into the Clearwater's house. I had a plan. The plan was to storm across the reservation, break into the Clearwater's house, and rip that little mangy wolf's head off.

I hadn't know Seth had a sister, much less one suffering from heartbreak. Luckily for him, poor little Seth hadn't been in the house (I hadn't realized until later that he was in Alice's bed again). Unluckily for me, an empath can't resist healing a broken heart.

_At the time, Leah had been human. I'd crept up to her room and pushed the door open the tiniest bit, so that I could only see part of a girl curled up on her mattress. She wasn't sobbing. She was just sitting on her bed, swaddled in a blanket, and staring at a television. Maybe that wouldn't have been so pathetic, had the Television been turned on. The girl was just staring at the blank screen, but I had known that she wasn't really looking at the screen. She was reliving something, and I didn't think the memory was a good one._

_"What's your name?" I leaned against the doorframe as she jumped, staring at me with scared eyes. It was only then that I realized that I shouldn't have let her know I was here. Human girls were often scared when a stranger broke into their house._

_"Who're you?" she whispered, her eyes wide with fear. Hadn't I asked her first? I put a soft smile on my face and told the truth, but not the whole truth._

_"I came to see Seth," I explained. I didn't really want to murder an innocent today, even if they were related to a mutt, "Is he here?"_

_"He's gone off with Sa- the La Push gang," she sniffed, tripping over her words. I'd wager that she was upset because of this Sa- person (Samuel? Sanchez? Sal?), not because her younger brother was in a gang on werewolves, but I didn't bring that up. I wasn't clear on how much this girl knew about her furry next door neighbors, and I wasn't going to break the treaty._

_My anger had near dissipated, but not because of my own emotions. It had been swept away by the depths of this girl's depression._

_Then it clicked. The only werewolf with a name that started with Sa. Oh, this girl…she'd fallen for the alpha. How typical._

_I blasted the girl with a pulse of the urge to be honest with me, which had led to an accidental breakdown. I hadn't used my abilities in awhile, so I was out of practice. Oops._

_"He left me for another girl. He just breaks up with me and disappears off the face of the Earth, and he comes back and avoids me, and then he comes back to me. We try to make it work, but he gave up. And then he comes back to apologize one day and sees my cousin, and thinks "hey, she's super pretty. I'll just go out with her instead." And they both just ride off into the sunset. And you know what makes it so much worse? Everyone-" she hiccupped as she tried to mop up her tears, "Everyone's taking his side. They're treating me like a mess, like I should have never even cared. Even my dad and brother, they don't know what to do with me. And Paul? Paul and I used to be friends. Now he's just mad at me all the time."_

_This girl was getting the brunt of the werewolf conspiracy. I could understand the whole "family not understanding you" part, but the rest…that was out of my ballpark. This girl needed another girl to talk to. Not me. I offered the best I could, "Paul's a jerk, and your brother is an irresponsible, mangy dog."_

_"I should probably defend my brother, but that statement's pretty spot on," she managed a laugh, and I realized I was subconsciously monitoring her happiness. I gave her a boost of clarity._

_A balanced mind was like a pot roast. It took a lot of ingredients to put it together (I enjoyed cooking some things, pot roast being one of them, even if I couldn't taste it). Instead of using carrots and beef, I used happiness, clarity, and a pinch of calmness._

_"What's your name?" I asked, making sure that I didn't invade her comfort zone. I stayed right at her doorway, not moving an inch either way._

_"Leah, Leah Clearwater," she answered, and gave me a weird look, "Hey, didn't I already tell you that Seth was gone? Why're you still sticking around?"_

_I shrugged, "You looked lonely. See you around, Leah."_

_"Who're you?" Leah asked again, her mind clear enough to let her realize again that there was a strange man in her house._

_"Doesn't matter," I spun on my heel and started to walk out, "Hey, do you know where your brother- oh, nevermind."_

_I'd stalked out of the house and back over the treaty line, and Leah had never given me away. She saved her brother's life that day, but I'd never let her know that. She knows my wife has a habit of cheating on me. She's just never known who with._

If she had known that I'd been there that day to take her brother's life…

Well, there was no sense in thinking of that now. Leah wouldn't ever have to know, since I had no current plans of murdering her remaining family.

I jumped out of the car and gave Leah a friendly hug, half glad and half remorseful that I hadn't killed her brother. While I was glad to have Leah as a friend, being able to say I killed a werewolf would be a huge pride booster.

_Sure Alice cheated again, but at least I have a werewolf pelt in my mancave!_

On second thought, maybe it wouldn't really boost my pride. It would be another life that the Major took. I had sworn awhile back to never take life without cause. If I killed every man that looked at me the wrong way, there wouldn't be anyone left on the planet. Besides, I believed that death should hold honor. There is no honor in slaughter, no matter the means or reason.

"Leah," I patted her back before separating from her, happy that I was back in the present. I didn't like memories. I had never made any good ones, "One day, you'll meet a good guy."

"I've already met one," she ran a hand through her shiny black hair and smiled, showing her pearly whites, "Well, I didn't just meet him. I've known him for awhile."

This surprised me. I didn't think Leah would bounce back for awhile. She must have met some heck of a guy. I just hope that he didn't end up breaking her heart. Now that I was concentrating, I could pick up some hints of infatuation within her.

"Did you see it coming?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. Leah blushed under my gaze.

She shook her head and laughed, "No, not at all."

I didn't ask for a name, knowing that Leah wasn't likely to give me one. We both liked to pretend that names didn't exist. If we didn't name our problems, they usually didn't hurt as much. Edward would no longer be Edward. He'd be "the latest other man" or something like that.

"Leah, what's up with you?" Charlotte asked as she jumped out of the car, done with her and Peter's steamy make out session that I'd been trying to ignore, "You always turn our Jasper into some mushy advice giver."

"I'm not your anything," I rolled my eyes. Charlotte had relaxed around me in the past decade. She talked to me like I was a friend, not like I was a southern vampire major who would rip her head off without a second's regret.

She might be like family to me, but I still demanded respect. She shouldn't be talking about me with such familiarity.

My thought process was different now. Being around my old Southern friends, my mind was resorting back to that of a Southern vampire. I didn't want to go back to that, though. Hopefully Leah would keep me grounded.

"I'm starving," Leah said, cutting the budding tension, "Shifting from wolf to human works up an appetite."

I'm sure it does. Now that she mentioned it, I was kind of thirsty, too.

"There's a café down the road," Peter said, handing her a credit card, "We need to grab a bite, too. Jasper, you coming with?"

"Unless you're craving campers, I'll have to pass. I'm heading down to the woods," I said, and not wanting to risk running across a human, I sprinted as fast as I could through the town and into the forest. I wasn't worried about humans finding out what I am. I'm too fast for them to even see. Unless I slipped up and massacred the whole town, I was fine.

I sniffed the air, trying to distinguish the different scents in the air.

_Alice put her hands around my eyes, having to balance on the tips of her feet to do so, "What do you smell?"_

_ "Just some elk. Do we really have to drink from animals from now on?" I had asked, spinning around so that I faced her with a smile, "Surely we could be making better use of our time."_

_ "What else could we be doing? I mean, we have the perfect opportunity to…hunt," she raised an eyebrow, knowing exactly what I wanted. I'd known this pixie for months, but I hadn't had enough of her. _

_ "I could name a million things I'd rather be doing than drinking a deer," I said, pulling her closer, "Number one, being you."_

_ And we fell together onto the forest floor, making our first hunting trip memorable._

I fell to the ground, much like I had done with Alice countless times. This time, however, I didn't have another to fall with me. I wasn't purposely falling, too lost in passion to take things gently.

No, this time, I fell in anguish. On my knees, I screamed as loudly as I could. Birds flew from overhead, startled by the sudden sound. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep myself from falling apart. Waves of heartbreak were crashing against me, threatening to take me over.

Isabella had mentioned feeling something like this. Was this what she had to go through? I thought that human emotions paled next to a vampire's, but she…she had also gone through this. This depth to heartbreak was not exclusive to vampires.

What I'd learned from Isabella was that this depression would not go away.

_"Jasper, I love you," Alice whispered, holding my face in the palms of her hands. She had this habit of making me feel safe, no matter what. She could make herself be the strong one, so that I didn't have to. Now, that wasn't necessary, since I quite enjoyed being strong, but it was still nice._

_ "I love you more than you could possibly imagine," I responded, and used my empathic abilities to show her just how much I loved her._

_ "Well I can now," she giggled, bringing me into a tight embrace. These were the happy days, the days that I thought our love would literally last for eternity._

"Oh, Alice," I chocked back a sob. Why did she have to ruin everything? Wasn't I enough to satisfy her?

That thought repeated in my mind. Enough to satisfy _her_? Was that even possible? Nothing was ever enough for her. I had always thought that she was just imperative and resourceful. I'd never even entertained the thought that she took more than she deserved.

Would anyone ever be enough for her?

I wouldn't be, but maybe I made that decision. I could've stayed at the house and forgiven her, and bought myself another decade with her, but I didn't. I broke the bond that we both had thought would be permanent. I hated myself for that.

"Jasper, come back to the house with me," Peter said from behind me. The sudden noise made me spin around in an immediate defense position, but I quickly saw that wasn't necessary. Peter had realized his mistake instantly and bared his neck to me, making himself less of a threat, "You shouldn't be alone right now."

He must have followed me, after realizing that if left alone, I would become a broken mess. Now, if the Cullens had known I was upset, they would not in any case follow me. They would be too scared to do so, scared that I would literally rip their heads off. Except Carlisle or Isabella. Esme would try, but sh-

Did I just refer to Isabella as a Cullen? I don't understand why that unimportant human kept crossing my mind, and she _definitely_ wasn't a Cullen.

"There's not going to be any difference, whether I'm sitting on my ass here, or sitting on my ass on your couch," I said rather bluntly. There weren't any women or children in the immediate area, so I let myself curse.

"There'll be some difference," Peter shrugged, looking innocent. He couldn't stop the smug grin from slipping onto his face, though.

"And what'll that be?" I raised my eyebrows at him, standing up. My eyes were probably still watering, filled with venom that would never spill over, but I couldn't help that. What I could change was the fact that I was lying on the ground and sobbing in front of my former second in command. Peter might be my best friend, but I could never get rid of the feeling of him being my subordinate.

"I've figured out a way that we can intoxicate ourselves," Peter wiggled his eyebrows, radiating his playful mood. I searched his emotions, looking for some hint that would give him away-either nervousness or anxiety.

I blinked, "That's impossible."

He shook his head, and a wide grin spread across my face. I shouldn't be that surprised. Back in his newborn days, nearly all Peter had talked about (beside his thirst, of course) was that he needed a drink. He had been an alcoholic before the change. It made sense that he'd devote some of his eternity to finding a way to drink.

I started to say a congratulations on his good work, but the words didn't leave my mouth. My mouth gaped like a fish and I grabbed at my waist, trying to find the source of the pain that had suddenly engulfed my entire being. There was no wound that I could find.

As suddenly as it had come, the pain left, and I straightened up again. I looked at Peter, my eyebrows furrowed together, "Did you do that?"

"No, man," Peter rolled his eyes, "The only gift I have is the ability to make ladies love me. Now come on. It's time to get the party started."

A party? I didn't think it would be a very intelligent idea for me to be in a crowded house full of intoxicated humans.

As if reading my thoughts, Peter explained himself, "The party is full of our kind, don't worry. Come on. I'll find you a nice rebound. I invited this one hot redhead friend of mine, Vicky. You'll love her."

Distracted by the mysterious pain, I ignored the warning bells that went off in my mind at Peter's reference to the "redhead named Vicky". I really shouldn't have done that.


End file.
